How The North Club in State College, PA, has evolved from a struggling facility with a reputation for sudden closures and little support for members, into a booming business with plans for expansion – all in less than two years!
When Karl Zimmerman partnered with State College, PA-area attorney, fitness veteran and current North Club president David Corneal in late 2007, he knew that turning The North Club around was going to be a challenge. For starters, the club had operated under a string of different owners (and names) since 1989, and had earned a reputation for financial trouble and broken promises among many area residents. Furthermore, the club’s membership base was largely made up of seasonal Penn State college students, and much of the equipment, as well as the facility itself, had fallen into disrepair.
“My first order of business was to institute an environment of safety for members and the business” says Zimmerman. He began by marketing to a new demographic, reaching out to the more mature, permanent residents in the area. “We did a direct mail postcard, I personally carried out a corporate wellness initiative, we redesigned our Web site and we joined every networking group in the area,” he shares.
Since many people were still apprehensive about the possibility of yet another sudden closing, Zimmerman changed the membership program from a yearly contract to a month-to-month plan. He also continued to foster the “safe” environment by stamping out any occurrences of employees, members or management getting involved in passing judgment on others in the club. “We were able to effectively whittle away at this type of negative behavior by using the ‘divide and conquer’ method. Soon a clear policy of safety from ridicule was established,” Zimmerman says.
Soon, these efforts began to pay off, and as he hired new staff members, Zimmerman was also able to establish new policies that require all employees to engage and connect with members on a daily basis. “Possibly the greatest change we made was teaching our staff to put members first,” he shares. His guarantee to his members is simple – a staff member will stop to chat at some point during every visit. Also, each member will be greeted upon entering the club and acknowledged in some manner on the way out. Very simple, but Zimmerman says this small, consistent act of courtesy has caused his members to embrace The North Club and has encouraged the development of an unprecedented referral pattern that has taken the club from a mere 160 members to over 3,000!
In March of 2008, Zimmerman started to reinvest in the club, which helped solidify member and community confidence in the seriousness of his long-term commitment. He purchased over 100 new state-of-the-art Precor and Cybex cardio stations (all with personal viewing screens), set up full resistance circuits and freshened up the overall appearance of the club. “My philosophy is to build as much value as possible into our memberships,” Zimmerman shares. “We offer group exercise featuring several Les Mills formats, we’ve implemented the Healthways Silver Sneakers fitness program for aging adults and we possess a personal training staff that is second to none.”
Today Zimmerman, with the help and guidance of Corneal, the shared vision of fellow entrepreneur and mentor Frank Kindler, and the support of his life partner Jaclyn Gensler, is preparing to open a brand new 21,000 square-foot sister facility, The West Club. “We have been able to grow because of the atmosphere, experience, safety and value that we offer to our community,” he shares.
To learn more about The North Club, go to www.thenorthclub.com or email thenorthclub@aol.com
